The set is a result of an experimental exploration of the realm of tool making. Where stone and flint tools have been the means of our ancestors’ survival for over a million years, they magnify our bodily (teeth, fingernails, fists etc.) capabilities of cutting and chopping, sawing and pounding. Through a method of three-dimensionally scanning and printing, the ancient artifacts are digitally outfitted with custom-designed handles, encapsulating the rugged forms in a perfectly enclosed case. By juxtaposing the polarities of the manufacturing processes in computer generated forms, an intersection of material technologies and functionality coincide on a tangible scale.

Gareth Branwyn is a freelancer writer and the former Editorial Director of Maker Media. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books on technology, DIY, and geek culture. He is currently a contributor for Boing Boing and WINK Books. And he has a new best-of writing collection and “lazy man’s memoir,” called Borg Like Me.

http://www.facebook.com/PelicanFeathers Tommy Phillips

Don’t you just love the gobbledygook concocted to describe a project like this? (A juxtaposition of some kind of opposites, which is a favorite theme of the artsy community.)

Because you couldn’t just say, “Precisely fitting modern materials to random, natural stone blades is kind of cool and ironic. And, we’re not that different from our ancestors sometimes.”

I agree with the other commenters about the language used in the article. Unless it was written tongue-in-cheek, then I suggest that Mr. Branwyn immediately cease and desist writing anything more complex than a grocery list until he has read, marked and inwardly digested Orwell’s “Politics and the English Language”. Aftwerward, as both an example of a well-written short essay on a simple subject and as a treat, he could read Orwell’s “A Nice Cup of Tea”.

As for the subject of this post, the tools are very interesting; they would make a nice addition to any collection of knives or tools.

Mr. Branwyn thankfully did _not_ write that pseudointellectual content-free drivel. He was quoting the two designers who came up with the project. I’ll leave selection of appropriate adjectivesfor said designers to your imagination.